National Conference: First Lady Betty Ford: 50th Anniversary Celebration
What: A national conference will bring together scholars, biographers, historians, archivists, First Ladies’ staff, and members of the public to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Betty Ford’s tenure as First Lady, showcase her leadership, and commemorate her groundbreaking conference on First Ladies in 1984.
The event is the first national conference of the First Ladies Association for Research and Education (FLARE). It is being held in partnership with the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Foundation, the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library & Museum, and American University’s School of Public Affairs and is open to the public with pre-registration.
When: Friday, April 26, 2024, 2:15 p.m. – 5 p.m. EDT
Where: Gerald R. Ford Presidential Museum, Grand Rapids, MI
Background: In 1984, seven years after leaving the White House, former First Lady Betty Ford organized and hosted the first academic conference on the lives and legacies of America’s First Ladies. The April 26 conference, titled “First Lady Betty Ford: 50th Anniversary Celebration,” will advance the growing body of scholarship that has been developed over the past 40 years. The event will feature some of the audio-visual materials from Mrs. Ford’s conference that have not been seen since 1984.
The conference will feature two panel discussions.
Featured speakers include:
- Susan Ford Bales, Author and Daughter of President Gerald R. & Betty Ford
- Diana Carlin, Professor Emerita of Communication, Saint Louis University
- Brooke Clement, Director, Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library & Museum
- Stacy Cordery, Professor of History, Iowa State University, and biographer
- Myra Gutin, Professor Emerita of Communication at Rider University
- Lisa McCubbin Hill, Author and Journalist
- Alison Jacknowitz, Interim Dean, American University School of Public Affairs
- Anita McBride, Executive-in-Residence, American University’s School of Public Affairs, Director of AU'S First Ladies Initiative, and former Chief of Staff to Laura Bush
- Nancy Kegan Smith, President of FLARE, former Director of the Presidential Materials Division of the National Archives and Records Administration
- Sheila Rabb Weidenfeld, Mrs. Ford's Press Secretary, an Emmy-award-winning Television Producer, diplomat, Chair of the C&O Canal Commission
- Colleen Shogan, Archivist of the United States
- Gleaves Whitney, Executive Director, Gerald R. Ford Presidential Foundation
The conference is FLARE’s first landmark event. FLARE was launched in 2021 in affiliation with American University’s School of Public Affairs’ First Ladies Initiative.
The conference is free and open to the public. The event will also be livestreamed.
Prior to the conference, the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Foundation will host its annual luncheon in conjunction with the First Ladies Association for Research and Education (FLARE) at the Grand Rapids JW Marriott.
RSVP: To learn more and register, please contact Natasha Abel: [email protected] and Andrea Mantakounis: [email protected]
All media interested in attending the event must RSVP by April 24, 2024.
About the First Ladies Association for Research and Education (FLARE)
FLARE’s mission is to create and sustain a network to promote and publicize research and education about the contributions, lives. Impacts, and lasting legacies of U.S. First Ladies. FLARE serves as the primary association to encourage interdisciplinary collaboration and outreach among scholars, institutions, first ladies’ staff, biographers, archivists, journalists, and public historians interested in research and education about the lasting legacies of U.S. First Ladies.
About American University’s School of Public Affairs
Established in 1934, American University's School of Public Affairs (SPA) is ranked No.13 in the nation (and first in the D.C. area) by U.S. News & World Report, offering undergraduate, graduate, doctoral, and executive-level programs to build and enhance careers in public service. The school offers a unique pairing of access to Washington, D.C. with world-renowned faculty and transformational research, driving progress in policy, politics, law, and public administration. SPA is also ranked third in the U.S. and first in the D.C. area for public affairs research impact.
About the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Foundation
The mission of the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Foundation is to enlarge President Ford’s legacy in a world that desperately needs his example of leadership and service. As author James Cannon wrote, “From its beginning American democracy has had the good fortune to produce a leader, often from an unexpected quarter, whose character and actions fit the tide of history. So it was on August 9, 1974, when this good and honest man, this obscure and stolid workhorse of a Congressman from the heartland of the nation, came to the rescue of the American government. To Gerald Ford was given the responsibility to move America from untruth to truth, from darkness to light.”
About the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library & Museum Part of the presidential library system of the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA), a federal agency, the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library & Museum allows visitors to experience highlights from the lives of President Gerald Ford, the 38th president of the United States (1974–1977), and his wife, Betty Ford. Two facilities, the Museum is in Grand Rapids, MI, where exhibits teach democratic citizenship and allow for quiet reflection. In addition to the permanent exhibits, changing temporary exhibits draws artifacts from partner museums nationwide. The Ford Library, which serves as a research facility, and also has exhibits and public programs, is located on the north campus of the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, the Ford Museum is in downtown Grand Rapids, Michigan. For more information, visit www.fordlibrarymuseum.gov
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